Engine



April 1967 A. T. LINCECUM 3,315,649

ENGINE Filed Jan. 25, 1965 40 0 4100 7." l/ncecum INVENTOR.

ATTOR/VE V United States Patent This invention relates to new and useful improvements in an engine.

It is an object of this invention to provide an engine operable on any liquid combustible fuel.

It is another object of the invention to provide an engine having a means for operation without the necessity of an ignition system or timing equipment.

In combustion engines as used at the present time, the care necessary to provide only a certain type of fuel, plus the precision necessary in carburetion and in timing the ignition, composes a large portion of the cost of the engine. It is an object of this invention to provide an engine capable of comparable performance on most any type of liquid combustible fuel, either clean or contaminated with collodial matter, with no gears for timing, and with no carburetor for measuring the flow of fuel and in place of the usual high pressure fuel pump, a low pressure fuel pump is employed, providing an inexpensive construction, easy to operate and easy to maintain.

Another object of the invention is to provide a combustion engine wherein the heat and turbulence of the fuel employed is brought about by means of a novel combustion chamber and injector plunger adapted to enter said chamber and cause the combustion.

With the above and other objects in view, the invention has relation to certain novel features of construction, operation and arrangement of parts more particularly defined in the following specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

The figure is an elevational cross sectional view showing a two piston engine with one piston in each extreme position.

Referring now more particularly to the drawings, the numeral 1 designates a motor housing in which the crank shaft 2 is rotatably mounted in suitable bearings as 3, 3, Cylinders 4, 4 are formed within the housing 1 and fins 5 form a manifold on the outer portion of the cylinders 4, 4.

A fly wheel 6 is mounted on one end of the crank shaft 2 having suitable vanes 26, 26 for generating a flow of air through the opening 7 into the housing 1 and around the fins 5. Ports 8, 8 and 9, are provided in the cylinders 4, 4 for the entrance of air and the discharge of combustion gases.

The crank shaft 2 has the usual drive shaft 10, on which the gear 11 is mounted, which meshes with and drives the gear 12 for the operation of the low pressure fuel pump. A fuel tank 14 is mounted on the housing 1 and the fuel line 15 leads from the tank to the pump and from the pump to the combustion chambers 16, 16 which are formed in the fuel receptacles 17, 17 which are externally reduced and threaded at one end and are mounted in the internally threaded cylinder ports 18, 18. Suitable check valevs 19, 19 are mounted in the receptacles 17, 17 to control the flow of fuel into the receptacles.

The pistons 20, 20 are mounted on the crank shaft by means of the connecting rods 21, 21 and connecting rod bearings 22, 22 and lubrication is maintained by the pumping action of the gears 11, 12 on a lubricant stored in the chamber 23 which lubricant is pumped through the outlets 25, 25 and circulated through the housing around the working parts of the engine by the splash action of the connecting rods and settles back into the chamber 237 Mounted on the top of each piston, and concentric with the longitudinal axis thereof are the projections 24, 24 which are clyindrical and tapered at the extended ends and terminate in a reduced cylindrical extension, said projections being positioned to enter the combustion cham bers 16, 16, mounted in the receptacles 17, 17, said chambers being shaped to receive said extensions and said tapered portions of said projections in a close fit.

In operation, the fuel pump 13 moves the fuel through the line 15 and through the check valves 19 into the receptacles 17 and as each piston moves towards the respective combustion chamber, the air trapped in the cylinder above the piston is mixed into the receptacles content and the mixture is compressed, and the walls of the combustion chamber being rounded, creates considerable turbulence and accelerates this mixture and as the compression progresses sufficiently to overcome the pressure of the fuel pump, the valves 19 are closed and the turbulence and heat of compression of the fuel and air is greatly increased by the entrance of the projection 24 into the reduced chamber of the receptacle 17 to the point of combustion, and the shape of the projection directs this greatly advanced compression into the center of the combustion chamber and the rounded walls of the combustion chamber increase the turbulence and heat and cause the combustion of the mixture in the chamber which will move the piston outwardly, the pressure of the combustion gases maintaining the check valve 19 closed until the discharge of the gases through the ports 8, 9. The turbulence and degree of compression experienced by the entrance of the propection 24 into the receptacle 17 will enable the engine to operate even though there may be contamination in the fuel, as much as the fuel will have been converted to gases through the heat of compression prior to the entrance of the projection 24 into the receptacle 17 and consequently the burning at combustion will be more complete than is ordinarily experienced.

As the pressure of combustion gases is relieved by being exhausted from the cylinders, the check valve 19 will reopen and the low pressure fuel pump will again inject a supply of fuel into the receptacle 17, and the process repeated. The speed of the engine may be varied by any suitable means of varying the quantity of fuel pumped through the line 15. Normally, the speed will be automatic, as the maximum flow of fuel supply is obtained and the degree of combustion and exhaust becomes constant.

While the illustration shows two cylinders and pistons, it is contemplated that as many as are desired may be employed, or the engine may be constructed with a single cylinder and piston.

While the foregoing is considered a preferred form of the invention, it is by way of illustration only, the broad principle of the invention being defined by the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. In an engine, a cylinder, a piston in said cylinder, a fuel receptacle at one end of said cylinder, a check valve controlling the flow of fuel into said receptacle, a combustion chamber in said receptacle and a projection on said piston formed to fit closely in said chamber to complete compression and induce combustion at the end of the compression stroke of the piston, openings in the sidewalls of said cylinder to exhaust the residue after combustion and to admit air upon compression stroke prior to combustion.

2. In an engine, a housing, cylinders in said housing, pistons in said cylinders, a crank shaft in said housing, connecting rods joining said crank shaft and pistons, a fly-Wheel on one end of said crank shaft and a drive shaft on the other end, a combustion chamber at one end of said cylinder, said combustion chamber being conical and a projection on said piston shaped to be closely received in said chamber, and parts in the sidewall of said cylinder for exhausting combustion gases in said cylinder following combustion.

3. In an engine, a housing, cylinders in said housing, pistons in said cylinders, a crank shaft in said housing, connecting rods joining said crank shaft and pistons, a fly-Wheel on one end of said crank shaft and a drive shaft on the other end, a combustion chamber at one end of said cylinder, said combustion chamber having a conical chamber and a projection on said piston shaped to be closely received in said chamber, parts in the sidewall of said cylinder for exhausting combustion gases in said cylinder following combustion and means for circulating air through said cylinder to scavenge combustion gases and to mix with said fuel upon compression stroke of said piston.

4. In an engine, a housing, a crank shaft rotatably mounted in said housing, a fuel tank on said housing, pistons mounted on said crank shaft, cylinders in said housing in which said pistons reciprocate, means on said crank shaft for pumping fuel from said tank to said pistons and for pumping oil in said housing around said crank shaft and pistons, a fly-wheel for circulating air around said cylinders, an insert mounted into the top of each of said cylinders, said insert having a fuel receptacle and a combustion chamber formed therein, a check valve in said insert controlling the fiow of fuel therethrough, a conical projection on said piston having an elongated cylindrical terminal, means mounted in said insert for closely receiving said conical projection and said terminal.

5. In an engine, a housing, a crank shaft rotatably mounted in said housing, a fuel tank on said housing, pistons mounted on said crank shaft, cylinders in said housing in which said pistons reciprocate, ports in the sidewall of said cylinder for exhaust of combustion gas and for intake of air on compression stroke, means on said crank shaft for pumping fuel from said tank to said pistons and for pumping oil in said housing around said crank shaft and pistons, a fiy-wheel on said crank shaft, means on said fly-Wheel for circulating air around said cylinders, an insert mounted into the top of each of said cylinders, said insert having a fuel receptacle and a combustion chamber formed therein, a check valve in said insert controlling the flow of fuel therethrou'gh, a conical projection on said piston having an elongated cylindrical terminal, means mounted in said insert for closely receiving said conical projection and said terminal, said means having outwardly tapering walls for directing the force of the compressed fuel trapped therein upon entrance of said terminal into said terminal receiving means outwardly into the combustion chamber.

6. In an engine, a housing, a crank shaft, pistons and connecting rods mounted in said housing, means for lubricating said crank shaft and pistons, means for delivering a supply of fuel to said pistons, a fuel receptacle mounted adjacent the top of each cylinder and a combustion chamber formed in the said receptacle and in the cylinder head, a projection on said cylinder head, means in said receptacle for receiving said cylinder head projection to provide maximum compression of fuel in said combustion chamber and ports in the sidewall of said cylinder for exhausting combustion gases and admitting air for compression and mixture with fuel in said receptacle.

7. In an engine, a housing, cylinders in said housing having a cylinder head, a crank shaft, pistons and connecting rods mounted in said cylinders and connected to said crank shaft, means for lubricating said crank shaft and pistons, means for delivering a supply of fuel to said pistons, a fuel receptacle mounted adjacent the top of each cylinder and a combustion chamber formed in the said receptacle, a projection on said pistons, means in said receptacle for receiving said cylinder head projection to provide maximum compression of fuel in said combustion chamber and ports in the sidewalls of said cylinder for exhausting combustion gases and admitting air for compression and mixture with fuel in said receptacle, and means for admitting a supply of fuel into said receptacle after the exhaust of the combustion gases upon each stroke of a piston.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,481,795 1/1924 Ford 123-33 1,989,549 1/1935 Cary 123-33 2,306,554 12/1942 Morehouse 123-196 3,027,960 4/1962 Ditel 12341.65

MARK NEWMAN, Primary Examiner.

LAURENCE M. GOODRIDGE, Examiner. 

1. IN AN ENGINE, A CYLINDER, A PISTON IN SAID CYLINDER, A FUEL RECEPTACLE AT ONE END OF SAID CYLINDER, A CHECK VALVE CONTROLLING THE FLOW OF FUEL INTO SAID RECEPTACLE, A COMBUSTION CHAMBER IN SAID RECEPTACLE AND A PROJECTION ON SAID PISTON FORMED TO FIT CLOSELY IN SAID CHAMBER TO COMPLETE COMPRESSION AND INDUCE COMBUSTION AT THE END OF THE COMPRESSION STROKE OF THE PISTON, OPENINGS IN THE SIDEWALLS OF SAID CYLINDER TO EXHAUST THE RESIDUE AFTER COMBUSTION AND TO AUDIT AIR UPON COMPRESSION STROKE PRIOR TO COMBUSTION. 